Page:Minister of Home Affairs v Fourie.djvu/90

 Rh recognition to all marriages, including those of same and opposite-sex couples and irrespective of the religion, race or culture of a couple. However, the current Marriage Act would not be repealed, but renamed only (to be called the Conventional Marriage Act). For the purposes of this Act, the status quo would be retained in all respects and legal recognition in terms of this Act would only be available to opposite-sex couples.

The SALRC memorandum expresses the view that these Acts would aim to give effect to both the right to equality in section 9 of the Constitution and the right to freedom of religion, belief and opinion in section 15 of the Constitution. They would entail no separation of the religious and civil aspects of marriage, and ministers of religion (or religious institutions) would have the choice to decide in terms of which Act they wish to be designated as marriage officers. The state would designate its marriage officers in terms of the Reformed Marriage Act.

The SALRC memorandum adds that the family law dispensation in South Africa would therefore make provision for a marriage act of general application together with a number of additional, specific marriage acts for special interest groups such as couples in customary marriages, Islamic marriages, Hindu marriages and now also opposite-sex specific marriages. Choosing a marriage act, the memorandum

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